Malaysian Australians
| Total population | |
|---|---|
| 33,620 (by ancestry, 2011) | |
| Regions with significant populations | |
| Melbourne, Sydney, Perth and Christmas Island (More than 90%) | |
| Languages | |
| Australian English, Malaysian English, Chinese(Cantonese,Min Chinese,Malaysian Mandarin), Malaysian Tamil, Malay, Indian Languages | |
| Religion | |
| Christianity (43%), Buddhism (26%), Hinduism, Sikhism, Islam (5%) | |
| Related ethnic groups | |
| Various ethnic groups of Malaysia, Singaporean Australians, Cocos Malays |
Malaysian Australians refers to Malaysians who have migrated to Australia, or Australian-born citizens who are of Malaysian descent. This may include Malays as well as overseas Chinese, Indian, mixed Malaysians and other groups. There are also ethnic Malays in Australia who came to Australia prior to the establishment of Malaysia, or who have come from other regional countries including Indonesia, Singapore and Brunei.
Australians of full or partial Malaysian origin form the majority of the population of the Australian external territory of Christmas Island.
At the 2006 Census 92,335 Australian residents stated that they were born in Malaysia. 64,855 Malaysian born Australian residents declared having Chinese ancestry (either alone or with another ancestry), 12,057 declared a Malay ancestry and 5,848 declared an Indian ancestry. The proportion of Malaysian-born individuals in Australia who claim Chinese ancestry is 70.2%, which is markedly different from the proportion of Malaysians in Malaysia who claim Chinese ancestry (22.9%). The proportion of Malaysians in Australia that claim Indian ancestry (6.3%) is similar to the proportion in Malaysia (7.1%). Taken together with the marked difference in the proportion who cite Islam as their religion (60% in Malaysia, 5% in Australia), it is clear that migration from Malaysia to Australia has not reflected a cross-section of Malaysia, but rather, is heavily skewed towards the ethnic Chinese community and to a lesser extent the ethnic Indian community.
Malaysian Australians are well established in Australia. Slightly more than half (46,445) had Australian citizenship, and 47,521 had arrived in Australia in 1989 or earlier. 32,325 spoke English at home, 24,347 spoke Cantonese, 18,676 spoke Mandarin and 5,329 spoke Bahasa Melayu. Malaysian Australians were resident in Melbourne (29,174), Sydney (21,211) and Perth (18,993).
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